Russian Convoys, Battle of the North Cape World War 2 at Sea 10. December 1942-December 1943, including BATTLE of NORTH CAPE, Part 1 of 2 German battlecruiser Scharnhorst in 1939. Sunk in the Battle of North Cape (Maritime Quest, click to enlarge) Battle of the North Cape - World War II - Scharnhorst 1 battleship, 1 heavy cruiser, 3 light cruisers, 8 destroyers Germany 1 battlecruiser Battle of the North Cape - Background: In the fall of 1943, with the Battle of the Atlantic going poorly, Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz sought permission from Adolf Hitler to allow surface units of the Kriegsmarine to begin attacking Allied convoys in the Arctic. As the battleship Tirpitz had been badly damaged by British X-Craft midget submarines in September, Doenitz was left with the battlecruiser Scharnhorst and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen as his only large, operational surface units. Approved by Hitler, Doenitz ordered planning for Operation Ostfront to commence.

This called for a sortie by Scharnhorst against Allied convoys moving between northern Scotland and Murmansk under the direction of Rear Admiral Erich Bey. On December 22, Luftwaffe patrols sited Murmansk-bound convoy JW 55B and began tracking its progress. Aware of Scharnhorst's presence in Norway, the commander of the British Home Fleet, Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser, began making plans to eliminate the German warship. Seeking battle around Christmas 1943, he planned to lure Scharnhorst from its base at Altafjord using JW 55B and Britain-bound RA 55A as bait. Once at sea, Fraser hoped to attack Scharnhorst with Vice Admiral Robert Burnett's Force 1, which had aided in escorting the earlier JW 55A, and his own Force 2. Burnett's command consisted of his flagship, the light cruiser HMS Belfast, as well as the heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk and light cruiser HMS Sheffield. Fraser's Force 2 was built around the battleship HMS Duke of York, the light cruiser HMS Jamaica, and the destroyers HMS Scorpion, HMS Savage, HMS Saumarez, and HNoMS Stord.

Battle of the North Cape - Scharnhorst Sorties: Learning that JW 55B had been spotted by German aircraft, both British squadrons left their respective anchorages on December 23. Closing on the convoy, Fraser held his ships back as he did not wish to deter a German sortie. Utilizing the Luftwaffe reports, Bey departed Altafjord on December 25 with Scharnhorst and the destroyers Z-29, Z-30, Z-33, Z-34, and Z-38. That same day, Fraser directed RA 55A to turn north to avoid the coming battle and ordered the destroyers HMS Matchless, HMS Musketeer, HMS Opportune, and HMS Virago to detach and join his force. Battling poor weather which hampered Luftwaffe operations, Bey searched for the convoys early on December 26. Believing he missed them, he detached his destroyers at 7:55 AM and ordered them to probe south.

Battle of the North Cape - Force 1 Finds Scharnhorst: Approaching from the northeast, Burnett's Force 1 picked up Scharnhorst on radar at 8:30 AM. Closing in the increasingly snowy weather, Belfast opened fire at a range of around 12,000 yards. Joining the fray, Norfolk and Sheffield also began targeting Scharnhorst. Returning fire, Bey's ship failed to score any hits on the British cruisers, but sustained two, one of which destroyed Scharnhorst's radar. Effectively blind, the German ship was forced to target the muzzle flashes of the British guns. Believing he was engaging a British battleship, Bey turned south in an effort to break off the action. Escaping Burnett's cruisers, the German ship turned northeast and attempted to loop around to strike at the convoy. Hampered by degrading sea conditions, Burnett shifted Force 1 to a position to screen JW 55B. Somewhat concerned that he had lost Scharnhorst, Burnett reacquired the battlecruiser on radar at 12:10 PM.

Exchanging fire, Scharnhorst succeeded in hitting Norfolk, destroying its radar and putting a turret out of action. Around 12:50 PM, Bey turned south and decided to return to port. Pursuing Scharnhorst, Burnett's force was soon reduced to just Belfast as the other two cruisers began suffering mechanical issues. Relaying Scharnhorst's position to Fraser's Force 2, Burnett maintained contact with the enemy. At 4:17 PM, Duke of York picked up Scharnhorst on radar. Bearing down on the battlecruiser, Fraser pushed his destroyers forward for a torpedo attack. Maneuvering into position to deliver a full broadside, Fraser ordered Belfast to fire starshells over Scharnhorst at 4:47 PM. Battle of the North Cape - Death of Scharnhorst: With its radar out, Scharnhorst was caught by surprise as the British attack developed. Using radar-directed fire, Duke of York scored hits on the German ship with its first salvo. As the fighting continued, Scharnhorst's forward turret was put out of action and Bey turned north. This quickly brought him under fire from Belfast and Norfolk.

Changing course to the east, Bey sought to escape the British trap. Hitting Duke of York twice, Scharnhorst was able to damage its radar. Despite this success, the British battleship struck the battlecruiser with a shell which destroyed one of its boiler rooms. Quickly slowing to ten knots, Scharnhorst's damage control parties worked to repair the damage. This was partially successful and soon the ship was moving at twenty-two knots. Though an improvement, this reduced speed allowed Fraser's destroyers to close. Maneuvering to attack, Savage and Saumarez approached Scharnhorst from port while Scorpion and Stord neared from starboard. Turning to starboard to engage Savage and Saumarez, Scharnhorst quickly took a torpedo hit from one of the other two destroyers. This was followed by three hits on its port side. Badly damaged, Scharnhorst slowed allowing Duke of York to close. Supported by Belfast and Jamaica, Duke of York began pummeling the German battlecruiser. With the battleship's shells striking, both light cruisers added torpedoes to the barrage.

Listing severely and with the bow partially submerged, Scharnhorst continued to limp along at about three knots. With the ship critically damaged, the order was given to abandon ship around 7:30 PM. Charging forward, the destroyer detachment from RA 55A fired nineteen torpedoes at the stricken Scharnhorst. Several of these struck home and soon the battlecruiser was convulsed by a series of explosions. Following a massive explosion at 7:45 PM, Scharnhorst slipped beneath the waves. In the wake of the sinking, Matchless and Scorpion began picking up survivors before Fraser ordered his forces to proceed to Murmansk. Battle of the North Cape - Aftermath: In the fighting off the North Cape, the Kriegsmarine suffered the loss of Scharnhorst and 1,932 of its crew. Due to the threat of U-boats, British ships were only able to rescue 36 German sailors from the frigid water. British losses totaled 11 killed and 11 wounded. The Battle of the North Cape marked the last surface engagement between British and German capital ships during World War II.

With Tirpitz damaged, the loss of Scharnhorst effectively eliminated surface threats to the Allies' Arctic convoys. The engagement also demonstrated the importance of radar-directed fire control in modern naval battles. Selected Sources Signatures of Participants in the Battle of the North Cape, December 1943 (Documents.16538) Signatures of Participants in the Battle of the North Cape, December 1943 Catalogue number Category private papers If you are interested in the full range of licenses available for this material, please contact one of our collections sales and licensing teams. History note Cataloguer RWAS Content description Colour photocopy of the cyclostyled sheet (1p), widely circulated following the action, bearing the signatures of all the survivors from the German battle cruiser SCHARNHORST when she was sunk by units of the Home Fleet at the Battle of the North Cape on 26 December 1943 and, on the reverse and added close to the time, the signatures and home towns of a number of members of the ship’s company of the cruiser HMS JAMAICA, one of the British warships which took part in the action.

Associated subjects © IWM 2016 © IWM 2016 BBC - WW2 People's War - Battle of North Cape - Sinking of Scharnhorst The image attached to this story cannot be viewed for moderation or technical reasons Scharnhorst — Battle of North Cape By John G. Wass I joined the Royal Navy in 1942 and after training as a Telegraphist/Coder I joined HSM Scorpion, a newly built state of the art Fleet Destroyer. She had all the latest equipment, radar, asdic (sonar) and HFD equipment. She was armed with four 4.7-inch guns, 8 torpedoes, multibarrelled pompoms and other light flack weapons. We were based at Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands, and our first operations were anti U-boat sweeps between the Orkneys and Iceland. Basically this was a “ shake down cruise” to get every member of the crew working together as a team. As about half the crew were 18 to 20 year olds, who had never been to sea before most of us were seasick owing to the heavy sea conditions.

After this we joined the fleet of destroyers and other escorts, protecting the convoys of merchant ships carrying war materials from the United States and Britain to the North Russian ports of Murmansk and Archangel. Owing to the danger from German aircraft and U-boats based all along the Norwegian coast most of the convoys were run between October and April so that the convoys were to some extent protected by darkness. Convoys run during the summer months had resulted in heavy losses due to enemy action. As well as the weather (an ever present danger to ships) we had to contend with aircraft and U-boat attacks and by 1942 German heavy surface ships. Tirpitz, Luetzow and Hipper were in Norwegian fjords waiting to attack convoys, which happened in July and December of that year. In March 1943 the battleship Scharnhorst joined the other big ships at Altenfjord in North Norway to be in a good position to attack convoys going to North Russia.

On December 12th 1943 a convoy number JW55A sailed from Scotland and was escorted by the battleship Duke of York together with 11 destroyers including HMS Scorpion. This convoy arrived at Kola Inlet on Dec. 22nd and proceeded to unload at Murmansk. At 10.45 on Dec. 21st Admiral Fraser, C in C Home Fleet on the Duke of York learned via ULTRA, that Scharnhorst had been brought to “3 hours notice for sea”. He decided that Scharnhorst was preparing to attack the next loaded convoy going to Russia, and the Duke of York together with my ship HMS Scorpion and 3 other destroyers left Kola at high speed on the same afternoon heading for Akureyri in Iceland to refuel. After refuelling Duke of York, Scorpion and the other ships of Force 2 left Akureyri at 22.00 GMT on Dec. 23rd. Early on Dec. 24th Scorpion with Jamaica, acting as Scharnhorst, exercised to check radar. We were heading into a force 8 gale at 17 knts.

Admiral Fraser later wrote, “There was an unpleasant sea. Conditions in Duke of York were most uncomfortable, few people obtaining any sleep”. I consider this to be a gross understatement! Duke of York was 42,000 tons, she could slice through a storm quite easily. Conditions in Scorpion, a ship of 2,000 tons, were appalling. Heavy seas were sweeping over the ship; it was dangerous to go onto the upper deck, and one seaman, a well-known wag commented, “I think we are serving on a bloody submarine”. For the first time in my service at sea, water was coming through the ventilation shafts wetting everything and leaving 2 inches of water sloshing back and forth on the mess deck as the ship pitched and rolled on the way north. Convoy JW55B was making its way slowly north towards Bear Island, a mountain top that sticks out of the sea half way between the northern tip of Norway and Spitzbergen. This was the point of the greatest danger, as the loaded convoy would pass the convoy of empty ships coming back from Russia. It was in this area that the Royal Navy concentrated our naval forces to protect these convoys.

On Christmas Day about 19.00 Scharnhorst with 5 destroyers left Altenfjord to attack the convoy. The C in C of the German navy had instructed Admiral Bey in charge of Scharnhorst to attack the loaded convoy in order to relieve the pressure on the German armies fighting on the eastern front. Admiral Bey was finding that his destroyers could not keep up with him due to the storm, and ordered them to string out at 5 miles intervals and sweep the sea to locate the convoy while he went off with Scharnhorst alone. At about 04.00 on the morning of Dec. 26th we received a message “Admiralty appreciates Scharnhorst at sea”. I now knew that there was every possibility of being involved in a fight with the German battleship and decided that I would keep a copy of my logbook for the future. At 08.00 on Dec. 26th Scharnhorst received a sighting report from a U-boat and altered course. 3 British Royal Navy cruisers, HMS Belfast, HMS Norfolk and HMS Sheffield (Force 1), were covering this convoy.

At 08.30 Norfolk picked up Scharnhorst on its radar screen at 33,000 yards distance, and at 09.29 Norfolk opened fire on Scharnhorst and a gun battle commenced. At 09.40 a shell from Norfolk damaged the main radar aerial of Scharnhorst that sped away at 30 knts, radar contact was lost. Scharnhorst worked its way round the convoy to attack from a different direction but at 12.30 ran into the 3 cruisers again. Another gun battle ensued that lasted for about 20 min., during which time Norfolk was hit in the rear gun turret, which put it out of action. Scharnhorst then left the convoy and steamed S.S.E for the next 3 hours on course for a favourable interception by us in Force 2, which included Scorpion. During this time the 3 cruisers of Force1 were shadowing Scharnhorst and reporting its position and speed to us.

At 15.25 Admiral Fraser in Duke of York signalled the destroyers that Scharnhorst was 56 miles away and converging — Scorpion went to action stations and closed all watertight doors. Those of us in the W.T. office were very busy dealing with the flood of messages coming in by radio. At 16.30 Duke of York opened fire on Scharnhorst at 11 miles distance and Scharnhorst returned fire. I decided I wanted to see what was happening, so I nipped out of the office onto the upper deck but could only see the gun flashes. The flashes from the Duke of York appeared to be yellow in colour, and the flashes from Scharnhorst appeared to be of a more a reddish hue. I quickly went back to my office closing the watertight door behind me. Shortly after this Admiral Fraser signalled Scorpion and the other destroyers “Take up advantageous position for firing torpedoes but do not attack until ordered”. About an hour later Scorpion and the other 3 destroyers were ordered to “attack with torpedoes at first available opportunity”.

We were now trying to get into a position for firing, but this was proving difficult because Scharnhorst was moving very fast. About this time Scorpion was asked by C in C “Can you report my fall of shot”. Scorpion replied “Your last salvo 200 yards short”. At this time Scorpion and the other destroyers were firing star shells but many were being shot down. Down the voice tube I heard our captain speaking to the torpedo officer about the attack, so I again went out onto the upper deck to have a quick look and received a shock. Sharnhorst was a little more than a mile away with 3 or 4 star shells hanging over her. She was a beautiful but frightening sight ploughing so smoothly through the waves. She had so many guns and I felt that her secondary armament could have blasted us out of the water in an instant. I could not help exclaiming, “My God, how are we going to get out of this mess!”. A young seaman, called “Stormy” Evans shouted, “Put out wires and fenders we’re going alongside the bastard”.

I scuttled back to my office in great haste, not that the thin sides of a destroyer would have afforded much protection. At 18.40 we had managed to close Scharnhorst. The destroyers Savage and Saumarez were astern of Scharnhorst and Scorpion and Stord were on her starboard beam. Com. Mevrick of Savage was coordinating the torpedo attack, but Savage and Saumarez were seen by Scharnhorst who opened fire on them. Saumarez was badly hit and Savage less so. As Scharnhorst turned away from their attack she presented Scorpion with an excellent target and Scorpion fired a spread of 8 torpedoes. Scorpion sent a message to Fraser “Attack completed”. Immediately Scorpion sent another message to Fraser reading “Two hits on enemy”. After firing torpedoes, Scorpion turned at high speed and left the area zigzagging and laying a smokescreen as we went, with 6inch and 4inch shells from Scharnhorst dropping around us. On board Scorpion we heard underwater explosions — rumblings that echoed through the ship as vibrations. We all felt that Scharnhorst could not escape its fate.

These were the first torpedoes to hit Scharnhorst. Savage reported, “Estimate 1 hit”, but Saumarez was unable to fire its torpedoes due to damage. She had 13 men killed and 11 wounded. Later Savage claimed 3 hits. Shortly after this Savage reported “Main target stopped” and by now the Duke of York had stopped firing. Admiral Fraser then sent a message to the 23rd Destroyer Flotilla (which was Scorpion’s group) “Destroyer with searchlight illuminate target”. The destroyer with searchlight was Scorpion and as we approached, Scharnhorst appeared to be lying on its side under a pall of smoke, with fires burning on her. We could see a lot of wreckage on the sea with men in the water and on rafts. It was pitch black, snowing, at the tail end of a storm. They had lights on their life jackets, and as they went up and down on the swell the lights appeared to be twinkling. Within the reach of the searchlight I could see approximately 200 men who were blowing whistles and shouting.

Commander Clouston allowed the Scorpion to drift down onto these survivors so they would not be drawn under the ship. Scorpion then sent a message to Admiral Fraser reading, “Survivors are from Scharnhorst. Survivors state ‘Scharnhorst has sunk’” We were the ship nearest to Scharnhorst, but nobody except survivors saw it sink. Admiral Fraser then sent a message to the 23rd Destroyer Flotilla and Scorpion instructing them to accompany Saumarez to Murmansk at its “best speed”, which turned out to be 10 knts owing to the damage it had sustained. From the time that Scorpion’s searchlights illuminated the scene the captain had ordered Scorpion’s crew to put scrambling nets over the side of the ship with the intention of picking up survivors. Seamen were standing on these nets in pairs pulling the survivors up to deck level, where others including myself carried them down to our mess deck. The survivors were frozen, covered in Scharnhorst’s fuel oil and totally exhausted. It is generally thought that 15 min. in the sea at these latitudes was lethal.

However we quickly stripped off their oil soaked clothing, rubbed them down with our towels (mine never lost their oil stains) and wrapped them in blankets; after which we gave them hot cocoa to drink, which made them sick. Since they spewed up oil they felt better for it. We next provided them with clothes as we had thrown all their oil soaked clothing over the ship’s side; but not before I had collected a few souvenirs (amongst which was a life jacket), which now resides with my other artefacts in the museum on HMS Belfast in London. It was interesting to see that the dry clothes, which we issued to them, had been supplied by the Red Cross. I can only assume it was intended for the use of survivors from British ships sunk by the Germans, but we were giving them to the Germans sunk by the British! That night we and the German sailors bedded down together in a heap, owing to the lack of space on our mess deck. It was an unusual sight and left me wondering, what would happen if we were attacked by U-boats before we got to Murmansk Our ship’s doctor Lt.

Miller examined the survivors and was surprised to find them so fit, only two were put into the sickbay with minor injuries, one of which was Helmut Feifer who later became my firm friend. In the morning I was surprised to see how cheerful our German prisoners were, one of which, named Jonnie Merkle spoke perfect English with a North American accent. I asked him how he came to speak such good English, and he said that he had lived in the USA for some years. I later learned that he had been born and brought up in Canada and his family being of German origin had sent him to Germany for his education. He was particularly confident, and knowing that I worked in the wireless office he asked me if I could listen in to the German radio to see what was being said about the sinking of Scharnhorst. I told him that this was not allowed. Of the approximately 2000 men on board Scharnhorst there were only 36 survivors, 30 of which were picked up by Scorpion and 6 by another destroyer. We arrived in Kola Inlet (near Murmansk) about lunchtime and it was decided to transfer the prisoners to the Duke of York.

This was because the battleship had more space and facilities — feeding and showering etc. - than a destroyer, that was cramped even for its own crew. To transport them from Scorpion to the Duke of York a Russian trawler came alongside Scorpion to take them across to the battleship. There was consternation amongst the prisoners and Jonnie Merkle, who was by now their spokesman said,” It would have been better to have left us in the sea rather than hand us over to the Russians”. One of our officers assured them that they were not been handed over, but they were being put on board the Duke of York. An officer went with them and when they left the ship, the survivors gave “Three cheers” for Scorpion and its crew. Shortly after that we returned to Scapa Flow and were cheered round the fleet. © Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this .

26th December 1943: The Scharnhorst is sunk at Battle of North Cape 1943 The Scharnhorst is sunk in ‘Battle of the North Cape’ The Scharnhorst at her commissioning in 1939, smaller than the Bismarck class, she was classified as a ‘pocket’ battleship or battlecruiser. Hitler had become disillusioned by his navy. Before the war the Kriegsmarine had had ambitious plans for a surface fleet with impressive capital ships. The building programme had produced the Bismarck, the Tirpitz and a number of smaller ‘pocket’ battleships. The Germans had a powerful ships – yet not so overwhelming a force that they could not be contained by the Royal Navy. And the only real use Hitler had for his warships was as surface raiders that could sink merchant shipping. The demise of the Bismarck had demonstrated how hopeless they were in this role – the German ships were so big and such a threat that they were closely monitored by the Royal Navy, who would put to sea in force to sink them whenever they ventured out. And so it happened again.

Goaded by Hitlers latest rage about the uselessness of his navy the ‘pocket’ battleship the Scharnhorst had been sent out to do her worst. On Christmas Day 1943, the Scharnhorst and several destroyers sailed out from Norway to attack Russia bound Arctic convoys. By this time the British were easily reading German radio traffic so no such attack could be a surprise. In fact the Royal Navy were actively awaiting it and had two strong forces ready to attack, one sailing from Murmansk and the other from Scapa Flow in Scotland, including the battleship HMS Duke of York – ‘the Duke’. Ever since the sinking of HMS Glorious in 1940 they had a score to settle. There had also been the embarrassing debacle of the ‘Channel Dash’ in 1942. It was going to need the combined firepower of several ships to sink the Scharnhorst, a battle that was fought amidst snow storms in the freezing seas north of Norway, played out in the twilight world of a Boxing Day afternoon.

Ernest Reeds was on board the heavy cruiser HMS Belfast: 14:00 a message was received from the Duke which read “We are closing in on the Scharnhorst and our combined speed is 53 knots and are expecting to open fire in an hours time”. 14:27 We sighted “Scharnhorst” on the horizon and opened up with Starshell followed by 6” tracer. We fired 203 rounds of 6” and salvos from Scharnhorst fell just astern. Again she altered course and this time she almost got away. She would have done had not the Destroyers gone in and attacked with torpedo’s – 3 of which scored direct hits. In the attack the Destroyers were travelling at 38 knots. That slowed the Scharnhorst down to 24 knots and gave the “Duke” and “Jamaica” a chance to close in on her. 18:15 “Scharnhorst” is now 15 miles ahead and the “Duke” and “Jamaica” are to our Starboard. 18:50 We opened fire again with Starshell and 6” firing to the port side.

Our speed is over 32 knots and waves are breaking over continuous still making it hell but no-one takes much notice of it. 19:00 “Scharnhorst” is in sight and the Duke and her have started firing main armament. 19:05 “Scharnhorst” on our starboard beam and we fire again at a very long range. 19:10 Speed is now 34 knots. 19:14 “Scharnhorst” fires at us and her shells fall just ahead. We cant fire back as the range is too great for us. 19:16 “Duke of York” and “Scharnhorst” start firing at each other and Starshell lights them both up in the distance. 19:35 We are steering S.E. with the “Scharnhorst” on our Port bow and the “Duke” 10 miles ahead. The three cruisers are in line ahead astern of the battleships. 19:50 Course 140°. The “Duke” is between the “Scharnhorst” and her base and we are covering her from the North. She hasn’t much hopes.

Our speed has been reduced to 31 knots and the “Sheffield” has dropped back owing to trouble with her propeller shaft. The view from the bridge of the Royal Navy cruiser HMS SHEFFIELD as she battles heavy seas while escorting convoy JW 53 to Russia, February 1943. The ship suffered severe structural damage during three days of storms and had to return to port for repairs. 20:00 “Scharnhorst” has decreased speed to 21 knots. 20:05 “Scharnhorst” is going ahead of the “Duke” at a distance of 13 miles and they are still exchanging salvos with occasional Starshell for illumination. 20:25 We have gained the speed of 34 knots on a course 060°. 20:45 Position still the same and the 2 battleships are still firing but it is probably blind as it is now total darkness. “Scharnhorst” has altered course to the East. 20:50 “Scharnhorst” is firing close range as the Destroyers have gone in again to attack.

One of the destroyers got hit and received damage and 20 men killed. 20:59 “Duke of York” ceases fire because the Destroyers are in – “Scharnhorst” is on our Starboard beam. 21:05 Our speed has dropped to 31 knots. 21:06 “Duke of York” firing again and gives orders to “Jamaica” to go in and attack with torpedoes 21:10 Duke of York ceases fire. 21:15 “Scharnhorst” is on fire and is almost at a standstill. “Jamaica” fired 3 torpedo’s at her but were all misses. 21:20 The Admiral has volunteered to go in and torpedo the Scharnhorst and the C in C says alright. She is well on fire but still firing hard. Our own speed is 28.5. 21:30 Fired 3 torpedo’s out of Starboard tubes and scored hits with two of them. They are still fighting but they have dropped back to her 6” and 4”.

The Sinking of the ‘Scharnhorst’, 26 December 1943 by Charles David Cobb For the whole of Ernest Reeds account see BBC People’s War . Lieutenant A.G.F. Ditcham was on one the destroyers, HMS Scorpion, that disabled Scharnhorst. His memoir reconstructs the whole battle and describes how the Scharnhorst was caught between two intersecting sets of torpedoes fired by the Destroyers. They were then able to watch the end of the battle: We described a circle and followed Scharnhorst at about 3 miles, going much slower now. We were thus able to watch as Duke of York came up, reducing speed and at 1901 fired a broadside at an easy target. It was an awe-inspiring sight. At five miles, the trajectory was comparatively flat and the 14 inch ‘tracer’ shells leaped across the sea and all of them appeared to smash into her in a colossal explosion. Some of them may have gone over and hit the sea some miles further on, but they were not visible. She continued to dish out this punishment in a series of broadsides and Scharnhorst became a burning shambles.

One of the 36 survivors (out of 1980) was the messenger to the Gunnery Officer at the top of the superstructure. He told me that when the shells hit, the order was broadcast: ‘Damage control parties to such & such position’. The men would dutifully appear, more shells would arrive and ‘bits of them’ would go up past him in the gunnery tower. Also an interesting account of deciphering the Scharnhorst’s last message at Crytocellar. Gun crews of HMS DUKE OF YORK under the ship’s 14 inch guns at Scapa Flow after the sinking of the German warship, the SCHARNHORST on 26 December 1943. The Sub-Lieutenant standing on the right is probably Henry Leach (later Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Leach GCB DL) . Getting ready for sea again, Norwegian sailors overhauling new torpedoes on board the Norwegian destroyer KNM STORD back after her part in the sinking of the SCHARNHORST. Torpedomen of HMS JAMAICA who finally dispatched the SCHARNHORST.

Right to left: Petty Officer J O Mahoney, of Middleton, Co Cork, J Beck, of Wakefield, R Polkinghorne, of Hayle Cornwall, S Bell, of Thornaby, Yorkshire and an unidentified man at Scapa Flow after the sinking of the German warship on 26 December 1943. The men are still wearing their anti flash gear. Blindfolded survivors from the German battleship Scharnhorst at Scarpa Flow. They are wearing merchant seaman rescue kit and are walking down a gang-plank on their way to internment. 2 January 1944 Marcus McCaffrey November 17, 2016 at 2:45 pm My Grandfather, James Duncan, was the Chief Engine Room Artificer on board the Norfolk during the Scharnhorst action. He was wounded quite badly when the Norfolk was hit in the engine room but managed to save a fellow sailor in one of the flooded gun magazines, and with his team, repair one of the naval guns and restore power to the ship. Like many other accounts, he was very sad to watch the Scharnhorst sink and witness all those lives lost.

He spent a couple of months in hospital after the action but was able to collect his Distinguished Service Medal for his part in the Scharnhorst action from George V in March 1944. Coincidentally, before the war he was a marine engineer at Harland and Wolff constructing HMS Belfast whom he fought alongside on that day in 1943. In 2013, we were very lucky to spend a day on the Belfast where he was finally presented his Arctic Star by the Royal Navy. He died soon afterwards but we feel very fortunate to have many of his documents and photographs from the period. Daniel Willemsen September 28, 2016 at 4:55 pm I’m the grandson of a scharnhorst-survivor… Is there anyone out there who knows a person which met my grandfather “Paul Julius Willemsen”? I would like to know more about this man and how his character was.. I would be very thankful..

Glen Schofield May 3, 2016 at 12:34 pm My uncle Peter Ross was the sight setter in the 5.25 S2 gun He still lives in New Zealand where he went to after his discharge at the end of the war. He wrote a story on his life on the Duke of York which i have a copy. It is very good reading and must have been a very hard life the time he was there.He was sent to John Browns ship yard to join the DOY on September 3rd 1941. He left the DOY in Sydney after being in Tokyo Bay for the signing of the peace treaty with Japan. Giles Powell February 23, 2016 at 12:43 am My father, Lt Commander Selwyn Powell was secretary to Admiral Bruce Fraser, and on the bridge of the Duke of York. During the battle he kept notes of the action, especially the number of shells fired, so worked alongside Lt Commander Kenneth Cobley DSC. Richard Archer February 6, 2016 at 1:11 pm My Grandfather Stanley Archer was a deep-sea diver/’gun aimer’ on the Norfolk.

My aunt remembers hearing the news that the Norfolk had been hit by going up to Mount Wise in Plymouth. My Grandfather survived the attack but others did not. He never really talked out the experience, although my father said his greatest fear later in life was about dying alone in the dark at sea. Bill Pointer November 12, 2015 at 10:10 am My uncle William Lynch was Chief Stoker on board HMS Norfolk on 26th December 1943. He sustaind serious injuries one of the shell from the Scharnhorst hit below decks. He was “discharged dead” 29th December 1943. Christines father and my uncle must have served together. bill@pointers.co.za Ros Johnstone August 13, 2015 at 9:15 am My father was the navigator on the Belfast. He was given a DSC for his work in helping Admiral Bob Burnett track the Scharnhorst. Apparently he was the first junior officer to get a DSC. I still have his letters and the maps he drew at the time. Jason M.

Pilalas August 11, 2015 at 9:56 pm The photo of Sub-Lt Leach is remarkable in that his father was C.O. of H.M.S. PRINCE OF WALES, a sister ship of the Duke, which was sunk off Malaya by the Japanese in 1941. The father was killed. The son rose to Admiral of the Fleet in his own right and was Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Thatcher at the time of the Falklands in 1982. Lt Col R.J.G Hall (Retd) DSM April 11, 2015 at 9:05 am Captain (later Admiral Sir Frederick Parham GBE, CBE, KCB, CB, DSO) F.R.Parham, and my father were fellow Cadets at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. He was also my God- father. I was only 8 years old at the time of the sinking of the Scharnhorst but I remember him telling me of the role of HMS Belfast in this momentous event with his typical modesty. He also expressed his admiration of the gallantry with which the German Captain commanded his ship.

The latter comment seemed strange to a bellicose young boy. However, in later life I appreciated the respect and understood the bond between “all those who go down to the sea in ships” regardless of whose flag they fly. I shall be please to be contacted by and former shipmates and colleagues. Carol Baker February 1, 2015 at 12:24 pm My father, now 90 years of age, served on the HMS Scorpion and was involved with the sinking of the Scharnhorst. He remembers they picked up 18 survivors. He served in the Royal Navy for 22 years in communications as was a Yeoman back in the war years. His memory is very good and he can recall many of the events quite clearly. D Day is the only sketchy memory as his mother died at this time and he was given 3 days compassionate leave so he was quite emotional. He does remember they landed on Sword beach however and that he had to transport a wheelless bicycle, which provided the power for the communications.

Carol Baker February 1, 2015 at 12:16 pm My father, now 90 years of age, served on HMS Scorpion as a Yeoman. Only yesterday he recounted to me the sinking of the Scharnhorst and how his ship picked up 18 survivors. His memory is still very good when he recalls his 22 years in the Royal Navy, especially the war years. His D Day involvement is a little sketchy as his mother died and he was given 3 days compassionate leave at this time. He remembers they landed on Sword Beach and as a signalman he had to transport a wheeless bike, which produced the energy for the communications. Mike Wotton December 22, 2014 at 6:20 pm My father, Bill Wotton, was a Supply PO on HMS Scorpion in December 1943 when the ship engaged the Scharnhorst. My father died in 1987 but I remember him telling me that his job during ‘action stations’ was on the radar plot and after the sinking of the Scharnhorst he had to supply the 30 survivors picked up by Scorpion with replacement clothing.

He was on Scorpion from it’s commissioning in May 1943 until it was sold to the Dutch Navy in late 1945, and often told me about the appalling weather conditions during the Arctic convoys that Scorpion was on and having to help chip the ice off the upper deck to prevent her turning turtle.

Question: Which German battle cruiser was sunk in the battle of the North Cape in December 1942?
Answer: Scharnhorst